Old World Grace
by HometownHorrorStory
Summary: My version of episode fourteen in season three..Road trips always end up changing relationships don't they..? Rated M for future chapters.
1. No Escaping Now

**I know I have about a billion open stories, but they will all be continued.**

**This just popped into my head..it is a twist in the ball episode in season three.**

**Hope you enjoy!**

She was going to that ball. No ifs ands or buts. Damon would just have to suck it up. But how to do it, that was the problem.

There was no convincing Damon, he would agree to her face then find some way to keep her home. And Stefan probably could be convinced, but then he and Damon would be fighting each other, and that would ruin a good week or two. So she went to the next person she knew would be on her side. Elijah.

She could always count on Elijah, no matter what. The night of the sacrifice he was perfect until tempted with his family. That is one thing Elena could sympathize with. Family was the most important thing to her, that is why she was willing to send Jeremy away, and why she didn't think twice when she killed Ric, thankful for once that she was a supernatural doppelganger.

So she pulled out her phone and dialed Elijah's number she got from him yesterday. Vampires and their phones, she thought to herself, they are alive for a couple days and they already have phones.

'_Hello, Elena. Is everything alright?' _ She smiled without really thinking about it, his voice was so calming and had an odd mix of accents.

"Uhm, yea. It's just." She paused wondering who all would be listening. "Can you meet me at the Grill?"

'_Yes, of course, see you soon Elena'_

"Alright, thanks Elijah."

* * *

When she arrived at the Grill she only had to wait about two minutes before Elijah walked in with his usual grace that the rest of his family, strangely, didn't have.

She waved slightly from her table and he smiled and nodded at her. Her heart stuttered and she got butterflies in her stomach. She just coughed and shook her head, she was already between Damon and Stefan, she didn't need any more drama. Her body's reaction was stupid. Or at least she tried to tell herself that.

He walked over and sat down in front of her and she smiled and said, "Thanks for coming Elijah."

"Of course Elena, anything you need. And I hope you will be attending the ball tonight." He smiled back and Elena had to focus her attention on her drink so she could remember what she called him here for. What was going on with her today? Wait, she knew, it was his new haircut, away from the face, very sexy.

She looked up from her drink and said, "That is exactly what I wanted to talk to you about. I want to go, but Damon and Stefan have agreed it isn't _safe _for me there." She rolled her eyes, she was sick and tired of all the babying, "So I come to you, will you help me get to the ball, and _stay_ in the ball, because I'm pretty positive Damon would drag me out by my hair if he had to. I'm sorry to drag you into all this again but I am so desperate right now I would probably pay you." She said with a smile.

Elijah smiled back and said, "It would be my pleasure, and having you on my arm for the night is payment enough."

Elena blushed slightly, he was completely charming, but could be completely lethal. That was a sexy combination. God! Why did she think that so much? Crap. She took another long sip of her drink to try to snap herself back in reality.

"Thank you again. But now the hard part." She smiled and sighed jokingly, "I have to get ready without anyone noticing, and shop for a dress and I have a total of.." She checked her phone,"...seven hours to do so."

"Well how about this." He paused for a moment then continued, "The drive to Richmond is about forty five minutes. Would you like me to spoil you for a day forty five minutes away from anyone who could interrupt?"

She looked at him confused, "What do you mean?" She asked him.

"Well we go to Richmond and I get you anything you need to get ready for the ball." He replied like it was nothing more than a walk in the park, and she had always wanted to be spoiled Pretty Woman style, but no.

"I couldn't possibly accept that, I don't feel comfortable stealing, or compelling, if it is any different." Damon had already tried to take her on a 'shopping' spree over the summer, but she always felt guilty when he compels the cashiers to give it to them for free so she never agreed.

"No, no, we wouldn't compel anyone, I understand how you feel concerning that, and a thousand years here gives our family a chance to make money." He smiled his perfectly charming smile, "So how about it Elena."

Elena again shook her head, but she smiled slightly, she would really love to go, "You would be bored out of your mind! Why would you want to do this?"

"I highly doubt that, and I would do this because you still trust me after all that happened, and all I have done to you. For a person so young you have had to deal with great pain, and you are the toughest and strongest human I have met in a very, very long time. It is my opinion that you should have a day to not worry about who is coming to kill you."

Elena was speechless at the high praise he gave her. And smiled at the end of his statement. He was right, that would be nice. She smiled across at him and nodded, "Okay Elijah, but you have to help me choose the perfect dress! No escaping now."

"I wouldn't dream of it."

**End of chapter one! **

**I know it's barely over a thousand words..but there will be longer chapters! I swear!**

**Tell me how you like it! Reviews speed me along and make my muse speak up.**

**I am writing chapter two as of right after I upload this, so you shouldn't be waiting long!**

**I love Elijah, normally I am a Delena fan, but Elijah just has that old world grace.**


	2. Richmond

**Okayy time for chapter two! Sorry for the delay, my hour nap turned into an eight hour nap..whoops.**

**And the response has been wonderful! You guys rock!**

**The music I use in this story is what I'm listening to at the time in my playlist called Elijah..heh heh.**

**Oh! And I own no characters and or music in this and any other chapter.**

**Hmm..Elijah's point of view…yes please.**

So here they were, on the way to Richmond in Elijah's car. Elijah looked over at Elena sitting in the passenger seat of his '67 Chevy Impala and figured today was going to be a good day, but challenging.

It would be challenging because of his feelings for the girl. He tried to forget about them, he hadn't loved in a very, very long time, and in good reason. But Elena got under his shell without even trying, but he realized it once it was too late.

He should be distancing himself from Elena; he tried to, after he saved her from Rebekah's vengeance and caught up with her and told her about what was happening within his family he was determined to stay away from her. Once his phone rang and he heard Elena asking for his help all those ideas flew through the window and he went to her aid without a second thought.

And now he was going to have to keep it to himself, which was hard considering his compassionate and romantic traits got amplified when he became a vampire. And it was also hard because Elena was singing, well, which he always felt to be an attracting quality for someone, but the song she was singing was not helping his mind keep quiet.

_Shame on me  
To need release  
Uncontrollably_

_I I I wanna go o o all the way ay ay  
Taking out my freak tonight  
I I wanna show ow ow all the dirt irt irt  
I got running through my mind, whoa_

Damn the twenty-first century, he thought, I would never have this problem in the eighteen hundreds.

After a few more songs passed on the radio, none quite as..stimulating as the first, he turned the volume down and looked over at her with a smile, "You seem to know every song that comes on."

Elena blushed slightly, he caught himself before he reached over and stroked her cheeks, jawline, neck, collarbone- "Yea, well they are pretty popular, but they are kinda old too." She shook her head and laughed, "I could name them all, but I can't pass a biology test. Brains are weird."

He laughed as well and said, "Go for it, name them all." Trying to keep his mind 'PG'

"Well the first was 'I Wanna Go' by Britney Spears, the second was 'Sweet Dreams are Made of This' by Emily Browning, and the third was 'Running Up That Hill' by Placebo."

"Impressive.."

Elena laughed again and said, "Not hardly, how many languages can you speak? And write?"

He cleared his throat with a slight grin and glanced at Elena, she said "Yea, exactly."

"Well that isn't a fair comparison I have been alive for a very long time."

"Yea, yea, so in your long life where is your favorite place to be?" She asked.

He thought about it for a moment, "Well I have a small cabin up in the mountains of South Carolina, it's a lengthy drive to get anywhere from there and there is no cell service, cable, internet, anything. There is a creek that runs behind it and you can hear the water at night, it has few neighbors, I think that is my favorite place to be. But no one in my family is aware of its location or existence, so I'll trust you to keep a secret." He glanced over at her and gave her a grin, but his mind was at the cabin that he would escape to when he needed to get away from Klaus' schemes.

She sighed when he was explaining the cabin and said quietly, "I'll keep your secret, and I would love to visit it one day, it sounds nice."

"You can come anytime, Elena, all you have to do is ask."

* * *

Elena was smiling at the picture he drew her of his cabin and it reminded her of the cabin on the lake and she thought about her parents and then her mind stretched to Jeremy. She wondered how he was doing in Denver, she wondered if she made the right choice by taking away his and she just looked out the window wondering these things when Elijah spoke up, "Elena, are you alright?"

She frowned then shrugged, "Yea, just a little family drama is all."

"Would you like to talk about it?"

"Well, you know my brother Jeremy?" At Elijah's nod she continued. "I asked Damon to compel him to go to Denver. I just want him to be safe, I can't lose anyone else." She paused for a moment willing herself not to cry, "But I took away his choice in the matter, if he ever finds out.."

"I see. Well I believe you did the right thing by him. Mystic Falls is a dangerous place to be and Jeremy doesn't need to be in the middle of it, _you_ shouldn't be in the middle of it, but your heritage has made it so there is no stopping it. Come here." He said holding his arm out. Elena slid over to him and he snaked an arm around her waist and gave her a tight squeeze that took her breath away, but not because of his strength, more because his proximity, she looked up at him when he continued, "You did nothing wrong, so I suggest you quit beating yourself up over this. Besides this is supposed to be a fun day away from all that is Mystic Falls and," He looked around at the city they just entered, "we are here." He removed his arm from her and she kept herself from frowning, she already missed where his body was pressed against hers. She took a deep breath to try to get the smell of Elijah away so she could think straight again and smiled at her surroundings.

"Okay that was the last of my mopey behavior, for the rest of the day I am going to be worry free and fun."

He pulled in a parking garage and smiled as she spoke, "Good, good! So you lead, where to first?"

**Okay done with chapter two! Long car ride yay! And I own no music etc..**

**Yes those were some of the songs running through my playlist. And the cabin is a real place, and my favorite place..**

**A thousand super awesome points to the person who guesses why I used that car!**

**How was that chapter? Keep my muse fed! Review, Review!**

**Lots of love to the awesome response from the first chapter, my next chapter should be up tonight since I got plenty of sleep in the middle of the day today!**


	3. Through the Looking Glass

**Okay! Sorry for the delay! I had a surprise trip to Virginia (I went through Richmond!) and I didn't bring my computer. **

**And my power just blinked on and off about five times, now it is off so I probably won't be able to upload this until tomorrow. Thunderstorm :/ I hope everyone is okay this usually happens when there is a car accident up the road.**

**So shopping trip with Elijah, oh how I envy Elena!**

**And a thousand super awesome points are awarded to….*drumroll*….PsychVamp! I love you! Lol**

Elijah parked the car in a parking garage and the two walked a short distance to a small boutique that had one of kind dresses and gowns that were beautiful. The boutique was a hidden gem that Bonnie, Caroline, and Elena found one year for a pageant and loved ever since.

The place seemed small, but once inside it was fairly large and spread out, so when Elena walked in someone pointed her in the direction of her size and they were left alone to browse.

Elena turned to Elijah and grinned, she was ecstatic that he was doing this with her, "So Elijah, I think we should do this like my mother and I used to. You pick two, I pick two, then we pick one together. Are you up to it?"

"My sense of style is severely lacking." At Elena's dubious look he quickly added, "Well, lacking in everything but suits." He straightened his suit and grinned at her.

"Oh hush up you can do this Elijah." She turned to him and pretended to brush the dirt of his shoulders like they do in movies and she nodded and turned to the opposite end of the aisle, when she looked over she saw Elijah was just looking at her so she motioned to the rack and laughed lightly. Elijah grinned and nodded getting to work.

By the time they met up again she had chosen one white dress that was see-through, but had a black slip underneath that showed through the lacy material, and a scarlet dress that flared at her waist and had black almost seeping up the skirt from the bottom, fading into the dress the farther up it went.

Elijah had a gown that was black and almost a pink or tan color with sequins that made the entire dress shine and the top came to points and was sleeveless with black sequins. The second choice was a mermaid type dress that was a gunmetal grey with hints of blue in the right places. They didn't show the other their choices and instead placed them in Elena's dressing room, Elena's choices in front, with the sequin dress in the very back.

Finally they met up again to choose together and they played and joked around with all the hideous dresses. Elena was actually worry free through the day, when she was with Elijah she just felt safe, and felt like she could trust him.

They decided on a midnight indigo dress that hugged her to her thighs and flared out with gathers in the skirt and with jewels at the top, sleeveless.

Finally she smiled at Elijah and said, "So was that _so_ horrible?"

"Oh Elena I barely survived the waves of lace and silk."

Elena just laughed at him and shook her head. She walked into the dressing room and tried her best to shut the curtain, but there was a sliver left on the edge that wouldn't go away so she just shrugged, it wouldn't be the end of the world if he saw her in her underwear, she might even need his help getting them on. She couldn't wait to make her way to the back of the pile of dresses to see what he chose.

* * *

Elijah was waiting outside her dressing room, it was set up so there was the dressing room within an actual room with a pedestal in the middle and mirrors all around the walls. Elijah was sitting in a chair in the corner of the room when he saw Elena's now ponytailed head poke out of the curtain and with a huge smile she said, "Now it's the best part!" She closed the curtain back again, though there was still a small gap between the wall and the edge of the curtain.

He ground his teeth when she slipped her shirt off and unbuttoned her pants then shimmied out of them. He was fighting with everything he had to hide what was threatening to embarrass himself and make Elena uncomfortable.

When she bent over to step in the first dress he practically lost it. Thankfully she slipped the dress up and stood out of sight to try to cinch it up. He got a hold of himself in that brief time and then heard a 'humph' from the dressing room.

"Everything alright in there, Elena?"

"So Elijah, you have been alive for a while right?" She said in a tone that implied she was fishing for something.

"Yes." He replied almost in question.

She walked out in the stunning Indigo dress and he smiled, it was beautiful, _she_ was beautiful. She then turned around revealing the back of her dress instead of a zipper it was a lace up and she had no hope of doing herself, it went down to the small of her back, and he had a flash of desire, desire to be the one that opened those laces, his hands slipping her gown down, past her hips, and thighs, pressing himself into her, hearing her gasp as she felt what she did to him..he quickly shut down his thoughts before anything else popped into his mind and focused back on real life. "So can you work this?" She asked.

He smiled and nodded, "I'm sure I could manage it." He stood up and went over to the dress to tighten each lace and anytime his fingers grazed her back he felt an electric shock go through him. He was utterly confused. Even with Tatia his body never reacted this strongly.

He finally cinched her up and she looked in the mirror and moved in it, and eventually frowned. "This looked really good on the hanger, but I don't know, I don't think it's the one." She turned to him, "What do you think?"

"I think that you are beautiful in anything you put on, but if you don't like it, I agree with you."

"That is a very diplomatic answer." She said, but he caught the light blush that tinted her cheeks and he smiled at her, proud he caused it with his compliment, that was when he saw the blush deepen. She quickly turned to go try on a new dress and a thought occurred to him. Maybe his attraction wasn't just one sided, if a smile from her made him weak at the knees, and a smile to her made her blush then there could be something more. He shook his head, he couldn't think that way.

It took her a while to get out of that dress since she hadn't waited to let him untie her, so she had to wriggle out of it, but once she got out, the next three dresses went quickly because of the lack of lace up backs, and although he thought she was mesmerizing in all three none of them clicked for her, so she put each of them back in their opaque plastic coverings.

When she reached the last one she was a little discouraged, but he had hope, this last one was very different from the previous three. He heard her unzip the cover and heard a tiny gasp and she spoke out, "Elijah, this is _gorgeous_!" He puffed up with pride and smiled,

"Hurry up and try it on, that was my favorite choice."

"Ugh, it has another lace up back."

"I will help, don't worry."

"I know."

She then opened the curtain and smiled a huge smile when she walked out, it didn't have the fit yet, due to the lack of tightening on the back, but she literally took his breath away in the gown, thankfully he didn't need to breathe. He looked at her face and there was something in her eyes that wasn't there with the previous dresses and he knew that was the dress.

"My dear Elena." He said almost in a whisper, "You look..." He paused at a lack for words, "Stunning."

He stood when she stepped on the pedestal, he came up behind her and started lacing her up. With each lace tightened he saw her excitement grow and he couldn't erase the smile on his face that mirrored hers.

When he finished lacing her up he placed his hands on her hips and looked over to her face reflected in the mirror and nodded, "I think we have a winner, Elena." He caught her gaze in the reflection and at that moment he wanted her, the love he had been trying to push back using a thousand years of learned restraint, and the passion he felt for her crashed through the wall he had built and he was sure there was no going back, or hiding from it.

"I agree." She said, a little breathless and he again wondered if it was him doing this to her.

Elijah stepped down the two small steps from the round pedestal and held his hand up to hers, "Miss Elena, may I have this dance?"

* * *

The second Elena opened the dress covering she thought this would be the one, and when she slid into the dress and opened the curtain with a goofy smile on her lips and saw Elijah's reaction she was positive it was the one, _the_ dress.

"My dear Elena." He said in a whisper, and the rest of his words were lost on her because she was echoing the words _'My Elena.' _She liked that, _his Elena._ She stepped up on the pedestal and he followed and stood behind her to tighten her up with a smile on his face as big as hers.

When he finished, she expected him to step down like she did in the previous dress, but instead he placed his hands on her hips and locked his gaze with hers in the mirror and said, "I think we have a winner." That was when she saw it. The look in his eyes that she couldn't describe as anything short of love and want. She had wanted to see that same look on Stefan's face, he always had the love, but the want and passion was always lacking, but Elijah showed it all and that made her get almost lightheaded with emotion. And she knew the real reason why she trusted him, felt safe with him, and why she always turned to him. But she couldn't admit it to herself, not now; she was supposed to be fighting for Stefan.

"I agree." She said, but she heard the breathlessness that her voice had and knew it wasn't going to be easy to ignore what just happened in her mind.

When he stepped down from the pedestal and offered her his hand she giggled, he always had charm and confidence and she loved when she saw glimpses of his past. She placed her hand in his and again she felt a jolt go through her body from his hand and she placed her other hand on his shoulder, while he placed his on her waist.

They danced like that, their eyes locked, for a bit, when he stopped suddenly and they just stared at the other. Elijah brought his hand up to her face and lightly trailed across her cheek, and down her jawline. Elena didn't have one thought pass through her mind and when he started to lower his head to hers she was frozen, and her lips parted slightly when her phone trilled out a tune it made both of them jump and jerk apart. Finally Elena realized it was her cell phone and she made her way to the dressing room, face flaming, to see who was calling.

Damon. Of course.

"Hello?" Elena asked, although she knew who it was.

"Where are you?"

"Well hi to you too Damon, and it is none of your business."

"Actually it's all of my business, where are you?" He asked again.

"Damon, I'm fine, just go get ready to the ball _I _was invited to, but am not allowed to go to!" She finished in a huff and hung up the phone turning it on silent and turning back to Elijah who was looking at her with a touch of amusement.

She just smiled and shrugged, "He isn't my favorite person in the world right now."

Elijah just nodded and said, "Okay, get dressed, we have a dress, what else do we need?"

Elena thought for a second then said, "Shoes and jewelry that we can get at a place up the road, and hair and makeup."

"Okay let's go!"

The rest of the day went by in a blur the two had a good time together, but they kept their distance as well. Elena got heels and some jewelry, but didn't let him buy an extremely beautiful, but expensive necklace for her that she saw in an old antique store window, it was a circular locket with a lapis lazuli stone in the middle and a sparrow flying around the right bottom of the locket with a half moon, half sun in the top right of the locket. The drive back was fun, but with no singing, more of the idle chit chat.

They got back to Mystic Falls with about an hour to spare so Elena and Elijah agreed for Elena to be dropped off at Caroline's house after a call from Caroline begging Elena to come to the ball, agreeing to any demands Elena had, so she could finish getting ready and so she didn't have to spend too much time around Rebekah and Klaus. Elijah would meet with Elena at the ball after she got a call from him that the Salvatore brothers were already there so there was no chance the brothers would stop her.

Elena and Caroline had major bonding time when they got ready and Caroline was going on and on about how Rebekah asked Matt to go to the ball, and how she was invited by Klaus, that shocked Elena, so did the amazingly gorgeous dress Caroline was given by him, that they both chose she wear because the rest of the dresses she had weren't dressy enough.

They also talked about Damon and the kiss. Caroline was angry that she found out through someone else and Elena said, "I'm sorry, it was just, with your dad.."

"The second Matt kissed you for the first time freshman year, you called me the second it happened and I don't hear from this now? And from somebody else?"

"I'm sorry, I just didn't know how I felt about it yet."

"Didn't? So you do now?"

"Well, not really." Elena said a little hesitantly. "It's just been a good day with Elijah, that's all."

"Oh my god! Elena! You're totally crushing for Elijah!"

"I so am not!"

"Oh that is a load of pooey, I saw the smiles and gooey looks when he dropped you off today! I thought my romance-a-meter was off, but now I know I am still a queen at seeing blossoming love." Caroline joked, "Hey, don't deny it, out of all the Mikaelsons Elijah is the best."

"It's nothing Caroline." Elena said still denying it, but flashing back to their almost-kiss and wishing her phone didn't ring.

"Mmhm, keep telling yourself that chicky. The ball has started, I wonder how long it will be before we get the call."

Elena just shrugged and the girls chatted about the going ons around their strange little town and before long they got the call and were headed out to the ball.

**So the power was out until about twelve or one this afternoon :/ **

**And it's strange, Caroline went from an annoying obnoxious character, to one of my favorites in one season!**

**So I hope you liked this chapter! It's kind of long! About three hundred words away from three thousand! YAY! So review, review, review! They help keep me motivated!**


	4. Author's Note

**Just a quick note that I am posting on all of my stories!**

**I am offering my services as a Beta if anyone is interested! I would love to help out with some stories that you geniuses have thought up!**


End file.
